


Turqoise Beads & My Homeland

by Wheres_my_cravat



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Western, American History, American Indian, Animals, Country & Western, Cowboys, Culture, Cute, Explicit Language, History, Language Barrier, M/M, Native America - Freeform, Native American Character(s), Native American/First Nations Culture, Nature, Old Western, Old tradition, Pilgrims - Freeform, Racial slurs, Sex, Slurs, Violence, Vivid descriptions of nature, gay shit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2018-01-12
Packaged: 2019-01-21 06:04:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12451143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wheres_my_cravat/pseuds/Wheres_my_cravat
Summary: Dusty heat and the long road. Living off of the earth, believing in spirits. Lush nature and dancing in rain. This is the life of a young nomadic Native American who leaves his tribe to follow his separate path....Of course it's not all sunshine and rainbows because one day he runs into Levi, the rebelious cowboy with some secrets of his own....Eren and Levi are curious about eachother, but they also know that trusting one another is dangerous. How can they ensure both their sanity, and their curiosities are satisfied? The answer is, they can't really...not unless they trust eachother. But is that even possible? For a pale-face and a native to get along? That sounds...well...a lot like fanfic. Good thing it is.





	1. Oh the Wonder of People

**Author's Note:**

> Hey sorry I have a new fanfic when I should be updating old stuff, I just can't help what I'm inspired to write and what I'm not inspired to write.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3rd person POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEYO BEANS. WELCOME.

A soft cold breeze filtered through the air. It was the first cold breeze of the day, but Eren knew many more would come. Soon the hot sand under his feet would turn cold, and the heated wasteland would be frozen by the chilled night air. The boy had been traveling for only a few days now, with only his deerskin satchel and the sweat on his brow.

 

Eren had left his tribe in the lusher more forested area of this region in search of enlightenment. Some other-worldly knowledge. He hoped maybe by leaving his tribe and the people there, that he could be led by the spirits to follow a path meant only for him. It was far fetched, he knew, why would the spirits care to guide him when he had left all he had known? But the brunet knew his path was not to hunt with the rest of the tribesmen for his entire life, and so he was here.

 

Eren knew that it would be difficult to live on his own. The wild was full of chaotic spirits, and that hunting could turn difficult where there were no animals, but still he decided he needed to leave the safety of his tribe. He told no one, he simply left in the night. Before leaving, he put a small carved eagle, his symbol, in his sleeping mother's hand so she knew that he left of his own will.

 

He missed his family even though it had only been a few days, but he had to keep going. In the few days of his travels he had already made it to a desert area. Small patches of desert grass and lonely dry trees were the only plants he had seen for the past day. If he turned around he could still see the edge of his forest on a mountain in the horizon.

 

It was already dark out, and the cold was beginning to sting Eren's skin. The sand beneath his feet was still warm from the day's heat, but it would soon chill with the setting sun. At the nearest tree, Eren sat down onto the sand. He pulled a thickly woven blanket out of his satchel and draped it over himself. He closed his eyes and kept his ears listening for predators or approaching feet. One could never be too careful with all these new pale-faces living on the land to the east.

 

The next morning Eren woke up before the sun, and stuffed the blanket back into the satchel. He once again started his long day's journey with a sip of water and a handful of picked berries from the forest.

 

Soon after he began walking for the day, Eren noticed a small stream and bent down to collect some of the water. He filled his water satchel and then dipped his fingers in the wet sand and smeared a thin layer of it over his skin lightly. It was to help keep him from getting sun burnt when the sun would return in a few hours.

 

He continued on for several hours as the sun rose and the desert became heated again. Eren could tell that he was getting closer to the edge of this desert as he could see more trees in the distance. He smiled briefly to himself because he loved forests. Always had. Probably because he grew up in one, but he loved all the sounds and smells of the forest. Wood, and flowers, rain water, chirping birds, creaking trees, it all came together and made such a peaceful orchestra.

 

The happiness of seeing another forest was quickly squashed by fear. A skinny pillar of smoke slowly rose from the canopy of the forest. A fire like that could mean one of two things. It couldn't be a tribe because there would be more than one, so it was either a nomad like me, or a pale-face hunter. It was unlikely to be a pale-face because Eren was far away from their village to the east, but sometimes cowboys with muskets came this far west in hopes of killing a native like Eren.

 

The likelihood of this smoke being the fire of a nomad was also very low, it was strange for nomads to light a fire during the day. If one lit a fire during the day then they'd have to watch it until it went out and that would waste a lot of travel time. Plus a fire during the day wasted fuel when fire can be used to scare off predators in the night.

 

Still, Eren had always been...intrigued with the pale-faces. He vainly hoped with a fearful heart that it was one of them. He was scared that one could be this close to his tribe, but he also knew that there was good and evil in all things, and that had to be true with these strangers as well, right? They had a different style of life he had never known and that was fascinating. Maybe if Eren could speak with one, then they could learn from each other...but no. His father always shamed him from dreaming beyond the tribe, but of course, he wasn't under his father's law anymore…

 

The boy had made up his mind...he was going to see the stranger. If it turned out to be a native then he would trade supplies and go on his way, but if it was a pale-face...well Eren hadn't thought out all the details yet, but he wanted to at least follow him, listen to his speech, and maybe approach him. If he had one of those weapons that can kill you from a distance, Eren thought he might not want to approach. His curiosity would certainly kill him someday.

 

Eren's nerves were a blaze the closer he got to the forest and the pillar of smoke. The sun was warming the air and it was almost full daylight. The dark brunette took a long drink from his water satchel and prepared himself to enter the forest. Who could it be?

 

_The nomad?_

 

_Or the pale-face?_

 

It was a good hour before he actually made it to the forest. His beating heart made it feel more like 4 but Eren could read the path of the sun and he knew it had not been so long. He walked through the forest silently as to not draw attention to himself. The dark brunet maneuvered through the soft grasses and rough dirt making no sounds. He was extra careful even as he could hear his own heartbeat in his ears. The boy was getting close enough that he could smell fire smoke on the wind. It smelled faintly of smoked salmon, and he wondered if it was just a nomad.

 

Still walking silently through the forest, he moved to find higher ground around where Eren though the camp would be. He couldn't find any hills or similar things but he did find an easily accessible network of trees. The nimble native climbed one tree and used it to hop onto the branches of another and then another effectively making it close enough to have a good line of sight into the camp and feel somewhat safe.

 

The smell of smoke was stronger here, and the wind was blocked by the trees. The sun still beat down, and in his current location Eren could feel it on his shoulders. From his place in the tree, squatting on a strong branch, Eren could see a camp. A fire built in a triangle fashion lay in the middle of the camp, and what looked like a cocoon made from fabric lay on the ground near it. A metal table stood over the fire and three salmon were resting on it. Clearly the table was meant for cooking but it was clearly not native-made. Neither was the makeshift bed made from blankets of strange fabric. However, what looked like a native-made basket holding berries was sitting next to the bed.

 

Eren was confused by this. Why would these items be in the same place? No native would use foreign tools when theirs worked just fine. But why would a pale-face use native baskets? Or the better question, where was the camper? He wasn't in his camp, but Eren could tell he was nearby and would be back soon because of the cooking salmon and the open fire.

 

The native boy waited for until the camper would return.

…

 

Levi had been living in the wild for quite some time now. He had left his little mining town after it was overrun with corporate bigots who wanted to monopolize the town's mining business. The raven was not one to stick around in a city run by greed. He decided he could probably survive out on his own, and has been traveling ever since. He even traded with local natives from time to time. They seemed to trust him after he proved he wasn't carrying any guns, and after a stiff introduction most natives were happy to trade english-made things for native-made things. They seemed interested in them.

 

Levi hadn't had much trouble with the locals because he never picked any fights and he wasn't an asshole...well...to natives. To his own people? Yeah he could be considered an asshole, but that's because his own people were for the most part ignorant and therefore completely unknowing of what they have done to the native peoples by living here. Already many pilgrims and immigrants have scared natives off their own lands and out of their homes. That certainly was not fair.

 

Last night Levi had reached the edge of the forest to what seemed to be a desert beyond and he didn't know for how long it extended. The raven needed to collect more food and supplies before he journeyed into the desert. Today had already begun to be a hot day for him, and even as he lit the fire to smoke the earlier collected fish, he knew he'd regret lighting a fire in the heat of the day. As it later turned out...he was right.

 

He left his camp for a little while after setting the salmon above the fire to smoke so he could look for more berries in the forest for his journey into the woods. During his trip he didn't find many and only returned with a smaller basket than the one he had collected yesterday. However that wasn't the strange thing...Levi felt a weird presence upon reentering his camp. It felt like someone else was there, and yet nobody was in his camp. Odd. He went about his schedule as normal though, and tried to ignore the feeling.

 

…

 

Eren was watching from the tree as the stranger walked into the camp. It startled him slightly, and his heart almost stopped at the realization that all he had to do was look into the trees and he would see Eren. Still, Eren didn't move a muscle for fear of making a sound.

 

The stranger was definitely a pale-face. His skin was paler than the moon, and his hair darker than night. It was cut in a strange haircut for their people, but more common in native peoples. His clothes were black and his shirt buttoned up to his chest, the top two buttons undone, likely in the heat. His sleeves were rolled up and a brown vest lay over the shirt. Black pants were tucked into brown boots and a thick brown belt held his pants up. A large cowboy's hat protects his face from both the sun and Eren’s eyes.

 

_Who was this pale-face and why was he here?_

 

Eren decided to wait and watch.

 

…

 

Towards the end of the day as the sun began to set, that strange feeling never left Levi. He wondered why he felt it and internally it started to unsettle him. After dark when the sun had set, Levi let his guard falter. He was bad to do so but his mind had been ragged because of the relentless thoughts about the strange feeling.  

He let his mind drift as he lay on his makeshift sleeping bag, his eyes closing. A cool breeze drifted by. Time passed as he thought on many things, the natives, his old town, the salmon he was smoking. Suddenly the wind started to pick up quite a bit. It was much colder than it had been and Levi rolled himself up in the covers of his sleeping bag. The wind just kept getting stronger and stronger. Suddenly he heard a pack of wolves in the distance and Levi started to worry.

 

…

 

Eren had heard a pack of nearby wolves and was instantly worried for the pale-face man. The wind had picked up really bad to the point where Eren was wrapped in his blanket and tied to the tree for his own protection. He should probably leave but he was too curious. Now with the wolves and the wind, all it would take is for the fire to go out and the wolves would be drawn to the salmon and then to the man below.

 

Speak of the devil, I could hear the wolves much closer, and soon enough they were in attack formation, a wolf could be heard from every direction. To him it sounded like five wolves but it could be more or less. The pale-face was out of his sleeping thing again and had drawn a knife.

 

_Did he not have a long-range weapon?_

 

The wind grew even louder and one of the thick blankets from the pale-face’s sleeping bag smothered the fire and the two strangers were surrounded in darkness. The wolves started circling and in the darkness Eren made a split-second decision. If he didn't help out, this man would die. He remembered seeing some alchohol looking bottle somewhere...

 

…

 

After the fire went out and Levi was smothered in darkness he readied his knife. It startled him and he knew the wolves would be on him any moment. He could hear them moving through the brush. Suddenly something fell from the tree and he heard a spark. Light erupted from a flame and Levi could see a figure holding a torch.

 

It was hard to make out but as the wolves descended this person waved the torch and yelled at them. Soon the wolves were scared off and by a miracle it sounded as if they were going to stay that way. When the excitement was over, the figure knelt down next to the hot coals of the fire and removed Levi's blanket from it, or what was left of it, and place the torch onto it, lighting it again. The flames grew and the person turned around his knife held in one hand, clearly ready to use it if Levi tried to attacked him.

 

In the firelight Levi could make out his features. Firstly, he was clearly a native, and a beautiful one at that. He was covered in sand from the desert but only a thin layer. His eyes were sharp in the moment but he could tell they were usually soft. His hair was short and brown which was rare for natives. His skin was clearly caramel even in the light of the fire. The native wore beaded armbands on his biceps and a beaded fabric piece surrounding his waist. He was barefoot, but his ankles also had bands around them. He had a satchel for water made from some kind of animal skin, and a storage satchel made from the same.

 

The native held his knife warily, and his stance was ready to attack. Levi held his hands out and slowly placing his knife on the ground.

 

“Thank you.” Levi tried to thank him but the native didn't understand his english.

 

Levi slowly grabbed some rope from his pocket and tried to hand it to the boy. Maybe this native would trust him if Levi gave him something. The native flinched as the cowboy reached in his pocket but then saw what Levi grabbed and he reached out a hand. He placed the rope in his hand and he went through his satchel to bring out a string of turquoise beads and placed them in Levi's hand. Levi bowed slightly and tried to thank him via eyes. He did the same.

 

The native put his knife away and Levi did likewise. The native looked as if he was going to leave but Levi didn't want him to leave yet. He was curious about this fellow. Why had he saved me, and why was he here alone?

 

To try and communicate something to him Levi tapped on his chest twice and said his name, “Levi.” Eren looked to my eyes and quirked his head to the side. It was kind of adorable. The nomad pointed at Levi and asked, “Lev-i?” Levi nodded his head and Eren tapped his chest twice and said, “Eren”. Levi nodded and pointed to him, “Eren” and then pointed to himself, “Levi”. Eren looked to have understand.

 

Levi waved his hand to Eren and he waved back.

  
_Wow. What a night, eh?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU. My email is wheresmycravat@gmail.com if you have thoughts or want to say hi.


	2. Hey Stranger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long over-due update. I just finished a long fanfic so I will have more time for this. I still won't update often but the chapters will get longer as we go. Thank you for your patience!

I was even more confused by the recent events. This stranger...Levi...he hadn't attacked me. Instead after I saved the pale-face he offered me some rope. I couldn't help but think maybe the stranger just wanted to trade to gain my trust in a small way. The rope given looked thin and sturdy, which I could use as fishing line or a noose for a trap. 

 

To take part in the trade I had decided that a string of beads may be enough. They were beautiful but I had lots of bead strings. They had some spiritual value and I liked them so I hoped it would be enough for this stranger.

 

Levi had taken the string of beads and it seemed to please the foreign man. He tried to speak to me his name and I understood only by a guess. I hoped I was right in my assumption. When I offered my own name in response he offered a smile, so I assumed it was what he wanted. 

 

Now we were just standing there sort of staring at each other. It was dark, and I could feel the heat from the lit fire crawling up my legs. Shadows danced across the stranger, as I was sure they were on me as well. I wondered what kind of thoughts were going through the man's head? This was my first time seeing a pale-face for myself. Fear still prickled along the back of my neck and down my spine. 

 

After a few moments the wind finally slowed to almost a still. The trees blocked whatever wind was still flowing through the valley after the small storm. I had so much I wanted to say, but no way to really communicate to him. 

 

That man with the dark hair and pale skin moved around his camp to collect some of the things that had been blown around by the wind. Every few moments would glance my way and I would feel silver eyes on me. He was looking to see if I would run off. 

 

While he cleaned up around his camp, I collected the things I had left in the tree. Whether I stuck around to make sure he survived, or decided to leave, having my things on me would be important.  _ He could still try to kill me at any moment.  _

 

_ Why was I even still here? _

 

I knew the answer of course.  _ I was curious. _ He was a pale-face. A stranger from the east...and yet he hadn't tried to kill me. Who knew what kind of things he knew? What kind of knowledge had he gathered over the years? What kind of life had he lived? Who  _ was  _ he? More importantly, who  _ is  _ he? Questions like this could wait though, I didn't need the answers.

 

_ But I still couldn't get myself to leave. _

 

My curiosity would certainly be the death of me. I wondered what my tribe would think of me now. I had saved the life of someone who could very well be a threat to our way of life. To all of my people. The man was a pale-face, and he was already so far west. 

 

“Hey!” I was pulled out of my thoughts by the stranger’s voice. 

 

When I looked to him he had a pale hand outstretched toward me. A thick blanket was held in his hand. I looked up to his face, and a soft smile was placed there. If you could call it that. I could tell the smile was somewhat unnatural for the man. It suited his face, and he was handsome with it. His sharp jawline and high cheekbones were accented by the faint smile...but I knew the smile was for my benefit. Maybe he was afraid to scare me off?

 

His strange ‘cowboy’ hat fit his head nicely, his black locks pouring out from under it. I noted this to myself as I accepted the blanket from him. 

 

“H-he-hello.” I felt like I hadn't used my voice in a thousand years. It had been days since he had had a conversation with anyone else. I doubt that the stranger would be good conversation since hello was the extent of my knowledge of their language. 

 

_ I guess he wasn't really a stranger anymore… we had introduced ourselves to each other. _

 

Hearing the use of his own language his eyes widened and the smile became harder to see, but was somehow more believable to me. 

 

“---- -- ---- ------- --- ----?” The words sounded pretty much like gibberish to me, but by the sigh he let out after, I could tell he realized I couldn't speak English. 

 

He returned his hand to his side, and I wrapped the blanket around my shoulders. I had a blanket of my own, but the blanket given to me by...Levi was it? Yeah, Levi...The blanket was softer and thicker than mine, and was clearly made using a different technique. 

 

Levi returned to the fire and rebuilt it to last longer through the night. The darkness around us was amplified by the light of the fire. When he finished he sat next to the flames and enjoyed the heat. He had recovered some of the fish from the fire and was cleaning debri from them and eating some of it. He offered some of it to be and I took a piece gingerly. 

 

_ Was he just gonna keep giving me things if I stayed here? _

 

I wondered if he expected me to stay. It sort of seemed like it. I didn't have anywhere else to go, and it was already too dark to travel. My mind decided that staying with him may be less of a risk than trying to find somewhere else that was more safe to sleep. I sat near the fire but with a healthy distance between the two of us. I didn't trust him.

 

_ But I wanted to. _

 

Nibbling on the fish, I watched Levi. He seemed fairly relaxed. Especially for someone who could have just died if not for me. I was sure I wasn't the first native he had met. With all the rumors and tales of the pale-faces, I knew it must have been the same of my people to his. His people saw us as savages. While we tried to protect the land, they sought to destroy it. It seemed to me that they were the savages.

 

_ We were natural enemies, really. _

 

Levi didn't act like a savage, or what I expected of a pale-face. So far he had been kind. I decided that I liked him. Still didn't trust him, but for now I didn't have anyone else. Slowly my eyes grew tired. 

 

“Thank you, Eren.” Levi said. I raised my head to look at him. He had spoken that in my tongue. He knew….some of my people's language?

 

“You're welcome. You speak my language?” I was caught off guard, after so much silence. I was eager to speak with him. Alas, the man winced after hearing such fast words. 

 

“Only...a little. Enough to trade.” His eyes were downcast into the fire. 

 

“Why didn't you say something before?” He smirked and sighed. He shrugged his shoulders. 

 

“Will you stay?” I took a moment to answer his question. I was planning to, but for how long? I couldn't be sure. His accent was chopped and rough. Levi sounded nothing like how my people did, but I could still understand. 

 

“Yes. For tonight.” The man nodded and passed me more fish. 

  
_I hoped this wasn't a mistake._.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really appreciate the patience! Please comment your thoughts and such. Don't forget to subscribe or bookmark so you don't forget me while you wait haha.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Don't forget to comment :)


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